front a/c breaker keeps tripping

[I_did_that]

My motorhome has 2 a/c and is on 50 amp. It seems to me that the front a/c breaker trips late afternoon. It could be just a coincidence, but in the mid-morning the front a/c starts-up and cools down just fine. For example, both yesterday and today, I ran errands at around 3p and when I got back around 5p, the front a/c had tripped. Only the front a/c was tripped. The bedroom a/c was running just fine. So I'm assuming the issue is with how the front a/c is drawing power.

Any thoughts on what could be going on? Thanks!

 

[Rene T]

How old is you RV? I wonder if the breaker is weak

 

[I_did_that]

How old is you RV? I wonder if the breaker is weak

Hello. It's 2013, so not all that old

 

[John From Detroit]

Does this 11 year old A/C instantly trip the breaker or does it run a while then CLICK?

If the latter

When was the last time you went up on the roof and took the cover off it.?
Two types of A/Cs. Coleman's suck, meaning they draw air IN through the condenser and exhaust out the sides. TO clean the concenser you remove the cowling (4 bolts and lift) clean it, replace the Cowl and done . ( That was easy)

Most other brands BLOW that is suck air in from the sides and BLOW it out through the concenser.

You remove the cowling (A bout a dozen screws along the bottom , lift it off, THEN you need to remove an inner cover (Procedure varies) and then you can access the fan side of the condenser and see all the crud that is built up there.. I had to remove the fan to get in and clean.

WHy does this trip ye old breaker. As pressure in the system rises the compressor works harder and as it works harder it draws more amps. Since not enough air is passing the condenser the heat builds and the pressure increases.

 

[Domo]

Turn off your power from shore and the inverter to stay safe. Then swap the breakers and see if the problem follows the breaker to the new location.

If the breakers stop tripping - leave it alone.
If the problem follows the breaker to the new location - replace the breaker.
If the problem remains at the original location the issue is the A/C or it's wiring.

When was the last service on the unit? (All A/Cs need to be serviced at home and in RVs periodically.) At the least, have the coils been cleaned of dirt and bird nests as suggested by @John From Detroit .

 

[Kirk]

I see that you are in TX but where are you are could make a differences as hotter ambient temperatures do impact the load on an air conditioner. A 10 year old RV would probably also have circuit breakers and air conditioners that are 10 years old as well and the history of each one plays a part in what is happening. The size of the air conditioners also play a part and it is not unusual for the air conditioner in the living area to be of higher BTU rating than the one in the bedroom. I suspect that both circuit breakers are of the same 20A rating. Have you cleaned the condenser coils of the air conditioners recently, or ever? If they need to be cleaned, either or both coils will increase the work that the air conditioners must do. I suggest that if you have not been keeping them clean, start by watching this video on how to clean them, then go to work. The suggestion to swap the circuit breakers is not without merit, but as a career electrical maintenance worker, that would not be near the top of my list. It is true that each time a circuit breaker trips, it gets just a little bit weaker, but that would not answer the question of why it has been tripping.

 

[solarman]

My motorhome has 2 a/c and is on 50 amp. It seems to me that the front a/c breaker trips late afternoon. It could be just a coincidence, but in the mid-morning the front a/c starts-up and cools down just fine. For example, both yesterday and today, I ran errands at around 3p and when I got back around 5p, the front a/c had tripped. Only the front a/c was tripped. The bedroom a/c was running just fine. So I'm assuming the issue is with how the front a/c is drawing power.

Any thoughts on what could be going on? Thanks!

delayed tripping like that can be caused by the run/start caps aging, those capacitors are small and cheap, they degrade with elevated temperatures over time. it's a simple and inexpensive procedure to replace with new parts.

 

[Ray-IN]

I agree with solarman. In addition, if the system is a bit low on refrigerant and you run the fan on low. The coils might be freezing over, which overloads the compressor motor.
Only run the fan on high and observe results.

 

[Rene T]

If the breaker for the front AC is the same size as the rear AC, just swap them out and see what happens. That test only takes 30 seconds

 

[Domo]

If the breaker for the front AC is the same size as the rear AC, just swap them out and see what happens. That test only takes 30 seconds

Yeah - as I mentioned, that's what I'd do first as it lets you stay inside and keeps you off the roof...

Great minds think alike!

 

[Kirk]

Have you made any progress on the issue yet?